Hot Topics:

York County farm preservation has less money to spend, but a new idea might net more land

York County ranks third in the state for the number of farmland acres preserved. But officials say funding has fallen in recent years.

By ED MAHON Daily Record/Sunday News

Updated:
03/04/2013 01:42:47 PM EST

York, PA -

Sally Barnes and her husband, Casey, don't ever want their land turned into a development, with dozens of houses replacing pasture, hay and woodland.

Both of them have full-time jobs, but they wake up early to care for the horses they breed and raise on the land. Some of the land they rent to a farmer who makes hay. They live there, too.

"I think it's a very unspoiled little secret of York County," said Sally, 34.

Their 35 acres in York Township sit a little more than three miles from a Giant supermarket in Windsor Township, and closer than that to a high school.

"But we feel like we're in the middle of nowhere," said Sally.

The Barneses recently took action to keep the land close to the same forever.

They filed paperwork to limit what they and future owners can build on the property. It's called a conservation easement, and it is designed to ensure that the land is used for agricultural purposes forever.

The Barneses were the first people to donate an easement to the county, to not get any money in exchange for preserving the land.

The county has purchased easements from farmers for years -- paying them a few thousand dollars for each acre that they agree to preserve.

York County ranks third in the state -- behind Lancaster and Berks -- in the number of farmland acres preserved, according to Patty McCandless, director of the York County Agricultural Land Preservation Program.

But funding for those efforts has fallen in recent years.

"Funding is a concern at the county and state levels," McCandless said. "We're trying to come up with new ideas."

Officials created the easement donation program in July of 2012, in part because of the Barneses' desire to preserve their land and because of dwindling money elsewhere.

"We all agreed that the time was right," said McCandless.

The couple can get an income tax deduction for 2012 -- as if they had written a check to a nonprofit.

But their property tax levels don't change.

And if they were to sell the property, it would be worth less money because development is limited, said McCandless.

"All farms that are preserved definitely have some of their real estate value removed," said McCandless. "...They're making a sacrifice."

'Need to do more'

Since 1990, the York County Agricultural Land Preservation Board has preserved 247 farms, covering 38,501 acres of productive farmlands. York County farmers have received more than $67 million in easement funds, with about $18 million of that coming from the county, according to McCandless. The rest of the money came from state and federal funds.

York County Commissioner Chris Reilly said that, years ago, the county typically spent in the $800,000 to $1 million range annually to pay various property owners for easements. That money was combined with state and federal funds.

In July 2007, York County commissioners approved borrowing $7 million for open space and farmland preservation, according to county spokesman Carl Lindquist. The money was spent in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

For this year, the commissioners allocated $100,000 for easement purchases, according to McCandless. That's similar to what the county's provided the past few years, but far less than the funding the program received at its height.

"We're doing enough to keep them viable and active, but we absolutely need to do more," Reilly said. "And I'm committed to doing more when economic conditions allow."

Reilly said he'd like the program's annual funding from the county to eventually be back in the $800,000 to $1 million range.

But he said funding for human services and emergency services are higher priorities.

'If this program is important to you'

Digital connection: Ed Mahon

·Twitter: Follow Ed for live coverage of political events, county commissioner meetings and more.

Federal and state money still goes to the program. For 2013, that state has agreed to add $1.12 million to the $100,000 that the county will provide for farmland preservation efforts.

But McCandless recently told a crowd of people interested in preserving their land that the funding levels aren't sufficient for the waiting list of more than 70 properties.

"If this program is important to you, let your legislators, your public officials know," she said.

Those officials are the ones who could approve more money for the efforts.

'People that will never sell their farms'

York President Commissioner Steve Chronister said he feels a little differently about the program than Reilly does. He said he's voted in favor of funding it before, including borrowing funds. But he's also opposed some funding levels.

"There's a lot of people that will never sell their farms, whether they get money or not," Chronister said. "I don't want to see this be a giveaway program."

He said the program has benefited some people he considers very wealthy.

McCandless said the money people receive for preserving their farms is less than they would get for selling them.

Even if there are people who would keep their farms no matter, they are eventually going to die, she said.

"Everybody's going to have to give up their farm one way or another," she said. "What we're trying to do is preserve the farms for the people that we will never know. We're trying to create a stable agricultural community in York County for generations."

From 450,000 to 200,000 acres

The amount of farmland in York County has decreased from about 450,000 acres in 1950 to about 200,000 acres today, according to county planning commission figures that McCandless recently cited in a presentation.

McCandless said farmlands provide jobs, food and material for the housing and construction industry, ensure that food products will be available in case of national or global disasters, and recharge groundwater and watersheds, providing vital water resources. They also provide tax revenue to counties, municipalities and school districts, while not requiring the same public services as other types of property, she said.

Sally Barnes, who works for the York County Conservation District, said there were many factors, including that the property is less than 50 acres.

But they decided to donate the easement.

"We love where we live. ...We really wanted to make sure it was protected," Barnes recently told a room full of people interested in the program.

Officials with the York County Agricultural Land Preservation Program say several farm owners have expressed an interest in making an easement donation for 2013.

McCandless said the donation program, which county commissioners approved in July, is for people who don't require easement income or whose farms don't meet the stricter requirements for purchased easements.

Deb Watkins owns about 100 acres of farmland in Peach Bottom Township with her brother and niece. They have been on the waiting list to sell an easement for several years.

"I know we weren't even on the first page at one time," said Watkins.

Watkins, 53, lives on part of the property with her 24-year-old daughter, Nicole, who raises goats. They also rent tillable land to a crop farmer.

"It's been in our family for over 100 years," said Watkins. "...And we just want to keep it a farm."

At this point, she's not interested in donating an easement.

"We're just trying to get some extra money to make some improvements to the barn, and build a new fence," she said, and do "anything else that we can to improve the farm."

What is a conservation easement?

When you hold a deed to a property, you hold a bundle of rights, said Patty McCandless, director of the York County Agricultural Land Preservation Program.

When you donate or sell an easement, you agree to restrict the use of that property, so that it will be used for agricultural production forever.

Are there eligibility requirements ?

Yes.

To sell an easement, it must be at least 50 acres in size, unless the parcels are next to farmland permanently protected with a conservation easement, or it produces a crop unique to that region.

There are also soil requirements. The farmland must produce a minimum of $10,000 in annual gross farm income, averaged over a three-year period.

There are also requirements to donate an easement, but those are less strict. For instance, a donated easement has to be at least 10 acres.

For more info on requirements, see this story at ydr.com, or visit the York County Agricultural Land Preservation Program section of yorkcountypa.gov.

There is a cap of $4,500 per acre. McCandless said the average has been about $2,500 per acre. The figure is determined by an appraiser.

Borrowed money

In July 2007, York County commissioners approved borrowing $7 million for open space and farmland preservation, according to county spokesman Carl Lindquist.

Of that, $6 million went to the York County Agricultural Land Preservation Program, while $1 million went to the Farm & Natural Lands Trust of York County. The money was spent in 2007, 2008 and 2009, according to Lindquist.

The vote to approve borrowing the $7 million occurred before Commissioners Chris Reilly and Doug Hoke were in office. Steve Chronister voted in favor if it.

"The growth at the time was really almost out of control with building. That's a time where it should have been done," Chronister said.

Proposed changes to inspection requirements

A county representative is required to conduct an annual inspection visit on preserved land sites.

State Rep. Ron Miller, R-Jacobus, has introduced legislation to require inspections only every two years.

In his co-sponsorship memo, Miller said that notification requirements are burdensome, and that many counties have hundreds of farms preserved and limited staff to conduct inspections.

"Technology has also evolved where aerial photographs may be used to help identify possible violations," he said in the memo. "Notice of inspections and arrangements for the same can be made more informally than by certified mail."

Patty McCandless, director of the York County Agricultural Land Preservation Program, said the inspectors check to make sure that the owners haven't violated any of the easement restrictions, such as building multiple nonagricultural structures.

Miller's legislation, House Bill 84, passed the state House in January. It passed out of the state Senate Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee in early February.

"We would really love this bill to get passed," said McCandless. She said it would cut their inspection work in half and give them time for other work, such as writing more conservation plans.

Marcellus shale money

Natural gas drilling fees collected statewide provided about $369,000 for York County in 2012 that could be used for greenways, recreational trails, open space, nature areas and similar initiatives .

"So far, we've used most of it for preservation," said County Commissioner Chris Reilly.

Commissioners have approved:

--- spending $87,000 to preserve land around a creek in Heidelberg Township;

--- $40,000 toward a 3.3-mile trail from Red Lion to Yoe, with a spur to Dallastown; and

--- $75,000 to help pay for a 47-acre property called Camp Security in Springettsbury Township where historians say a Revolutionary War prison camp once stood.

Commissioners on Wednesday approved applying for a grant through the U.S. National Park Service for a public access project at Native Lands Park in Lower Windsor Township. The federal government would provide $125,000, while the county would provide $100,000 for design and related work. Officials hope to fund construction with a $225,000 grant from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

The Barnes' easement

Sally Barnes and her husband, Casey, own about 35 acres of land in York Township.

The estimated value of the easement was $101,471.

The Barnes still own the property, which is broken up into two parcels, each with a house and a barn. They can sell it.

Agricultural structures could be built on the site, but only one additional house could be built.

One of eight cats called Peanut on Sally and Casey Barnes' farm in York Township. (DAILY RECORD/SUNDAY NEWS - KATE PENN)